Knights women's basketball nearly doubles up Bard, 79-41

Sunday, January 7, 2018 - 8:26 am

Annadale-on-Hudson, NY – Twenty straight points in a little over four minutes during the first quarter by the Clarkson University Women's Basketball team was all the cushion the Golden Knights would need as they cruised to a 79-41 Liberty League win over Bard College on Saturday afternoon.

The Golden Knights picked up their first conference victory of the season and moved back above .500 overall, improving to 6-5 and 1-3. The Raptors remained winless at 0-10 and 0-4. Clarkson begins a seven-game home stretch on Tuesday when it takes on St. Lawrence University.

With a season-high 27 points in the first quarter, Clarkson recovered from a tough loss against Vassar on Friday. The Golden Knights were up 7-4 midway through the first quarter, but a 20-0 run in 4:27 seconds that included four 3-pointers quickly provided Clarkson with ample breathing room for the remainder of the game. The Knights were particularly formidable on defense, forcing 16 turnovers in the first half and converting those chances with 21 points at the other end. Both Madison Shea and Devin Sorell scored 15 points in the first half. Bard shot just 2-for-23 in the first half, including 18 straight misses from the field over the last 16-plus minutes.

After Clarkson extended its lead to as many as 42 points in the early moments of the second half, the Golden Knights' starters were pulled for the final 18 minutes of the game. Allowed an opportunity to show their merit, the bench players finished the game with 35 points overall.

Shea finished with 15 points on 7-for-9 shooting in just 17 minutes, adding in 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. Sorell also had 15 points, going 6-for-11 from the floor with three 3-pointers in 18 minutes, while also contributing 5 assists and 4 steals. Tricia Loso scored 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting in 18 minutes of reserve, while both Molly Stewart and Rachel Marion scored eight points each. Marion also had a team-best seven rebounds.

For Bard, Katie Esposito had 13 points and 11 rebounds, while Sarah Morris was just shy of matching her teammate's double-double thanks to nine points and 10 boards.